Aftermath
by Charmingly Gorgeous
Summary: JULIE Kate's niece finds something interesting about her aunt's 'body' that leads the team to wonder what really happened to Kate. postTwilight, obviously.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Okay, originally, Kelly was supposed to be writing this, but Kelly's really busy with some other stuff, and Hannah kept pissing me off by bugging Kelly about this… so I just told her to shut it, and I wrote it. I know, totally not like me, but it was really bugging me. Hope you like!

Love

Julie

She watched the numbers on the elevator go up, one by one, and with each number, her eyes filled with more tears. She blinked them away, and sniffed, trying not to get the attention of the escort behind her. She glanced back at him, and rolled her eyes slightly. What a total guy.

The elevator dinged, and she drew in a quick breath, and stepped off. She glanced back again, and her escort pointed over to the right. She nodded, and walked to the right. Around the corner, there were three men. One was across from the empty desk, another diagonally across, and the last one with graying hair, was beside it. She immediately knew that this was _her_ desk.

She placed her bag on the side of the desk, and sat down on the chair. Feeling the stares of the men, she kept her eyes on the computer screen. Her escort stood there, beside the wall behind her. She let out her breath, and pulled out the first drawer on her right. In it were various items, pens, a pad of paper, and a palm pilot.

A tear slipped down her cheek, but she wiped it away busily. She was the one who wanted to do this. She was the one who told her father not to come with.

She reached down, and grabbed the items, placing them inside the bag on the desk. She pulled the bag onto her lap, and went into the next drawer. The man across from her cleared his throat gently, and she watched him stand. She frowned, but felt the need to stand up as well. She placed the bag on the floor, and walked around the desk, to see what is was he wanted.

She met him, looking up at him with no sense of fear in her eyes. She almost glared up at him, and stood her ground.

"I… you're here to clean out Kate's desk?" he asked her.

She scoffed defensively. "Obviously." She noted bitterly.

He nodded. "I… I didn't mean to intrude, but Kate's sketchbook was left on her desk, and… I looked through it. I just wanted to be near her."

Past the man in front of her, she saw the older man stand. He watched them closely, as she turned her focus back on the man. "You took her sketchbook and looked through it?" she asked, numbly.

The man nodded slowly, and offered her the book. She stared at the book, and took it from him. She threw it on the desk, and turned back to him, a fresh, cold, glare on her face. "How dare you." She said, almost a whisper.

She walked forward to him. "You didn't know her!" she yelled. Her tears rolled down her face freely now, but she didn't care. "None of you knew her! You didn't… know her…" she sobbed, as the escort behind her stepped forward.

The older man waved him off, and the escort reluctantly walked away. She sniffed, and got herself back together. "You didn't know her! You didn't have any right!" she yelled again, slamming her fist on his chest. "That was _her_ book, not yours! She didn't give you permission to look in it!" she sobbed.

He saw her begin to fall to the ground, and tried to grab her, but she pushed him away. She fell to the ground, and sobbed. The older man quickly got on his phone. "Get up here now." He said into the phone, and then hanging up.


	2. Chapter 2

TAINTED PROMISE: I would love to do that challenge, but I'm really swamped with my stories as it is. But, if you want, I'll help you write it.

Love

Julie

Abby stepped into the bullpen. Before she had a chance to start in on Gibbs for yelling at her, she stopped. "Brynne?" Abby frowned.

She looked up from her knees, and through her tears, she called for Abby. "Abby?"

"O my God!" Abby ran over to her. She was leaning against the desk, her knees pulled in close.

Brynne flung her arms around Abby, and buried her face into her shoulder. "I thought I could do it. I thought it'd be okay… but…" She sobbed.

Abby glared up at Gibbs, and rubbed the girl's back gently. "What did you do to her?"

Gibbs raised his eyebrow at her, but let it slide. "Nothing. What's a kid doing emptying out Kate's desk alone anyway?" he asked.

Brynne looked up. "I'm 18. I'm not a kid!"

Abby turned from Gibbs to Brynne. "Exactly. She's not a kid, and if Kate…" Abby paused, willing her own tears away, "if Kate heard you say that, she'd hurt you, you being her boss, or not."

"Who is Brynne?" McGee asked, looking up from his computer.

Brynne swallowed. "Kate's my aunt."

Tony took in a sharp breath, and Brynne looked over at him. She looked back at Abby, who was pulling out her cell phone. "What are you doing?" Brynne asked.

"Calling your father."

"You don't have his number."

"Yes I do. Kate gave it to me, just in case I couldn't get a hold of her on her home or cell."

Brynne sighed, and watched Abby call her father.

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Brynne sat down on the stool in Abby's lab. She watched, as her father and Abby talked. She knew that they were either talking about her, or Kate, perhaps both. But she wasn't going to go home. She was going to stay here, and finish what she started.

She had collected herself since her breakdown at Kate's desk. She brushed her hair back into a ponytail. If she was ever to get past Kate's death, then she would have to finish.

Ever since Brynne's mother died when she was 3, Kate had been like a mother to her. If had a problem with her father – just talk it out with Aunt Kate. If she wanted to go to a party, but her father wouldn't let her – talk it out with Aunt Kate. She would find a common ground between father and daughter. If Brynne had to go shopping – just call Aunt Kate. She'd become independent on her aunt, without even knowing it. Kate was her life line, her support, to do things she never thought she could do. Now… she was gone.

Brynne looked up, and slid herself off the stool. She walked over to Abby and her father, and stood there, until her father took notice.

"Brynne I-"

"I want to see her body." Brynne said, firmly.

Her father's eyes widened. "Brynne, I'm sorry, but I don't want you to see her like that."

Brynne narrowed her eyes, and moved over to Abby.

Abby looked from her father, to her. "I don't know. It might help with the healing process, but I've seen a lot of people go in there, and come out in tears, because it was to horrible for them to handle."

"Why don't you just wait until the funeral?" her father asked.

Brynne moved her gaze from her father to Abby. "No. I'm going to see her body. Hasn't anyone identified her yet?"

"We didn't need anyone to identify her, because… because Gibbs and Tony saw it happen. They know it was her." Abby said, placing a hand on Brynne's shoulder.

"No." Brynne moved away from Abby, and Abby's hand dropped to her side. "I'm going to see that body."

Brynne spun on her heel, and walked out of the lab. Her father paused for a second, surprised at her outburst. Before he got to the elevator, Brynne let it shut.

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"Mr. Palmer, why is young Caitlin's body still out? Did I not tell you to put her away?" Ducky asked, tension in his voice.

Jimmy turned, and glanced at Kate's body. "I know Doctor, but I… I just couldn't. It's cold and dark in there, and out here, its… cold, but bright." He said, regrettably.

Ducky shook his head. "Alright, I understand. I'll put her away."

He paused, staring at Kate's body. A white cloth covered her, but her eyes still stared up into the light above. He watched, not hearing the door open.

"May I help you?" Jimmy said, stirring Ducky from his thoughts.

The girl came over, and stopped short when she saw Kate's body. Ducky looked over, giving the girl a better view on Kate's face. Her hand rose to her mouth, as she walked forward.

"That…" She choked out. She slowly pulled the blanket up where Kate's hips were.

"Brynne!" her father breathed out, stepping into the room. Abby came in right behind him.

Brynne ignored her father, and Ducky watched her interestedly. She lifted the cloth, until she could see the front part of Kate's hip. She gasped, and dropped the sheet, letting it fall back to it's original place. She backed up into her father's arms.

He folded his arms around her, and she spun around in his embrace. A smile slowly appeared on her face. He gave her a look of utter confusion.

"That's not Aunt Kate!" Brynne said excitedly.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: SO sorry about leaving you guys like that! My baby needed to get fixed. pouts It was sad. Anyway, I'm back, and here's the next chapter!

Love

Julie

Kate's heart pounded in her throat. Her fingers were cold, holding the gun close to her chest. Her adrenaline was pumping through her veins, with her body pressed up against the wall. Gibbs turned around, and motions with his hand to go around the corner. She nodded, and he quickly disappeared behind the corner. She took a step forward, to follow him, but a hand wrapped around her mouth, pulling her back sharply.

She moved to turn around and shoot her attacker, but another attacker grabbed her gun and her arm, twisting it until she was forced to let go. Before she could lift her arm up to elbow the guy in the stomach, something hard hit her in her head, sending into a world of darkness.

He moved to his acomplice, a woman, who looked exactly like Kate. She held her gun, and wore the same clothes. They met each other's gaze. "Remember, someone, one of us, will be taking a shot at Gibbs. You are to step in front of it, and take the bullet. It will go through the vest. Remember, she was a Secret Service agent, you have to think like one."

The woman nodded.

"Now, go."

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"I'm sorry Caitlin." Ari looked up from sniper, and turned to his left. Unconsious, and bound, Kate laid on the cold floor. He ran a hand through her dark hair, and traced her jaw line. "But it must be this way."


	4. Chapter 4

"Brynne, that's Kate. You're in denial sweetie. I knew this wasn't a good idea." Her father said, running a hand through her hair.

"No I'm not!" Brynne yelled, frustratedly. "That's not Kate and I can prove it!"

Brynne pushed herself away from him, and went over to Kate's body. She pushed up the cloth, just to show her right hip. Lifting up her own shirt, she pointed to her left hip, at half of a butterfly tattoo, above her pants.

"See?" Tears of joy ran down her cheeks. "Remember Dad? Remember Kate spent three hours convincing you to let me get a tattoo for my 16th?"

Brynne's father's eyes widened, as the memory came flooding back. He turned around, to Abby. "Kate. She had a butterfly tattoo, just like Brynne's. This woman... She doesn't have a tattoo. That isn't my sister."

Abby's own eyes were wide, while she remembered her own memory of Kate complaining about how annoying it was, and asking how she did it. Abby walked closer, and saw the woman's bare hip. She turned to Ducky. "Duck, this isn't Kate!"

Ducky turned, buried in his own thoughts. He made his way over to the computer, and he pulled up Kate's NCIS profile. He scrolled down, until he found what he was looking for. "Tattoos:" he read off the screen, "butterfly, right hip." His mouth fell open, and turned around. How did he miss that?

"Ducky did you-" Gibbs walked in, Tony and McGee behind him. "what the hell is going on in here?"

"Jethro, we've made a terrible mistake -"

"Gibbs, Kate's not dead!" Abby cried happily. She jumped on him, giving him a tight hug.

Gibbs stared down in shock at Abby. Once he recovered, and Abby let go, he pointed at the corpse on the table. "That's Kate. We both saw her die. " he said, almost angrily.

"She doesn't have a butterfly tattoo, Gibbs! She even noted the tattoo in her file! Remember, that's how you new her tattoo wasn't a rose!" Abby said, excitedly.

Tony's mouth hung open. "What?"

Brynne stepped forward, out of her father's embrace. "Aunt Kate took me to get a tattoo on my 16th, two years ago. She got a matching one, on her right hip."

Tony's eyes widened. "So, Kate's not dead?"

"No Tony!" Abby lept with joy onto McGee.

"Well then where is she?" Tony asked, silently.


	5. Chapter 5

The scowl that darkened her beautiful face hadn't lifted in three days. The storm was still there, and grew stronger and stronger with every moment she spent in that house. _More like a prison_ she thought to herself, as she roughly washed the dishes. She set the last dish on the plastic rack, and threw the wet cloth into the sink. Drying her hands, she glared around the room, waiting for him to come in. When he didn't, she set the dry cloth on the counter, and walked out of the room. She peeked around the corner, but didn't see the monster who was keeping her like this.

Her small hands ran along the violet walls, as she kept her eyes and ears open. She placed her equally small feet quietly on the dark blue carpet, and made her way silently to the door. Her hand wrapped around the door knob, and she twisted it. When it didn't click, she realized it was locked. She turned the lock, and quickly twisted the knob. It clicked, and she pushed it open with a sigh of satisfaction. She was finally free.

A cold hand wrapped around her wrist, and yanked her back. He twisted her until he had her facing him, in an arm lock. "Where do you think you're going Caitlin?" he said, his eyes like dark snakes, waiting for her answer.

"Away from you." She spat coldly.

He twisted her arm harder, but she wouldn't give him the pleasure of her cry in pain. "Is that so."

"You can't keep me here forever. Gibbs and Tony will find you." she glared at him.

"Ah, but they think you are dead, darling."

"Don't call me that!"

"Caitlin, soon enough you will love me as I love you. Until then, you are to stay here against your will." He reached behind her, and closed the door and locking it.

She continued to glare at him when he ran his other hand through her hair. She went to push it away with her other, free hand, but he twisted her arm harder. Tears stung in her eyes, as he gently brushed his lips to hers. Her eyes went wide, when she realized what he could do. He pulled back, sensing her mixture of fear, and determination to not let him go further. He let her arm go, and she rubbed it.

"Don't worry Caitlin. I was raised properly, and I will not harm you further. Eventually, you will come to me." he smiled.

She pushed past him, and went into the only room she could have any privacy at all - her room with no windows.

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Gibbs stood in the middle of the bull pen. "Tony, I want you to put the heat on those guys at the airport. Tell them we're now looking for a woman with him. Send them a picture of Kate. McGee." he turned to the computer genius. "I want you to send his picture to all realtor agencies around us. Make sure you get the small businesses first - he won't want to be found. Abby." he turned around, and looked at the goth.

"You process that body, and you do it three times over." he said. Abby nodded, and he turned around and headed to the elevator. He needed to talk to the director.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews, they're gorgeous!

"I want her found." The director said, his face stone.

Gibbs nodded. "I do too sir."

"If you happen to kill Ari Haswari to get her back, then so be it. I'll handle the FBI."

"Yes sir."

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"Gibbs!" Abby jumped in, as he sat down at his desk.

He looked up at her. "What?"

"I found something." She smiled.

"Well, out with it!" He said, standing.

"Okay, well I went over the clothes of our Jane Doe, and I found something in her pocket. A feather." She glanced down at the paper in her hand. "It's a Canadian goose feather. So, I ran the a picture through the Canadian DMV database, and got this." She passed him another paper. "Her name's Alana Michaels. She's the same age as Kate, and she had just gotten out of a drug charge, when she came into the US."

Gibbs studied the mug shot. "Smuggling drugs into Canada?" he asked, his voice low.

Abby nodded. "Yup. She's also been linked to a murder, but nothing they could prove."

Gibbs looked up at Tony. "Anywhere on the airlines?"

Tony shook his head. "No, I've sent both pictures to every airline."

Gibbs turned to McGee. "Realtors?"

McGee looked up from his computer. "Um, yes boss. A small realtor down in Kentucky saw Ari and Kate, but that was two months ago."

Gibbs frowned, then loosened up. "He took her there to get a house first, so he could get the house without suspicion." He scowled.

"Tony, I want us on the first plane to Kentucky. Now."

Kate lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling. She scowled, when she heard a knock at the door. "Dinner." She heard him say.

Kate didn't budge. She wasn't hungry. She was down playing his stupid game, and she most definitely was not going to be falling for that scum. This might have worked before, after she was held hostage, but not now.

There was another knock on her door, and a call came, "Caitlin, your dinner will get cold." She rolled her eyes. Like she cared. She would rather starve then eat with him again.

Suddenly, her door came crashing open. "Do you forget who I am friends with?" he asked, grabbing her wrist. "I can have your friends killed in a second. Now," he dragged her out scowling to the kitchen "you are going to eat dinner with me."

"You're a sick bastard." She said, her voice filled with hatred. "I hope you burn in hell."

He waved his finger at her. "Now, now. That's not very nice. Eat." He pointed to the dinner in front of her.

She rolled her eyes, and glared. She picked up her fork, and started to move the food around. His eyes were cold on her. "Eat, now."

Kate picked up a piece of broccoli, and chewed it. Nothing was wrong with it, but it still tasted bitter in her mouth. As she put another piece in, she wondered how long she would have to wait until Gibbs and Tony came after her.


	7. Chapter 7

Chiroho: Yea, I'm going to at the end. She freaked out so much because normally Kate doesn't let anyone see the book, and this was very personal. If you still have questions, email me - my email's in my profile.

A/N: For everyone who got confused, Alana Michaels is the Jane Doe that looks like Kate.

5 months ago

"Let me go." Alana glared daggers at the man in front of her, holding her arm tightly. Her dark hair framed her hazel eyes that were cold with hate. "And piss off."

He didn't listen to her. "You won't run?"

She rolled her eyes. "No, if I did, then my employer wouldn't be to happy about that, would he?" He raised his eyebrow. "Do you want me to do scout's honour?" she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

He dropped her arm, and she rubbed the spot where he held. "Here." He tossed the bag of coke at her. She passed it to her partner, who opened it, and felt around in it. After he nodded, she nodded.

"Aren't you going to try some?" the man asked.

Alana raised her eyebrow. "I don't do it. I only deal. Business is done." She turned around, and began to follow her partner out.

"I have a proposition for you." He called. "I'll pay you more than you earn now in a year."

She stopped short, and turned to face him. "I'm listening."

He moved forward. "I want you to help me infiltrate NCIS."

"What the hell is that?" she asked.

"Government." He said simply.

She shook her head in disbelief. "No way. First, I would need to actually know something about what I'm doing, second, I would need to have a background to go in there."

"What if you just take the place of someone?" he asked. "I know everything about her – how she acts, what she eats, what her schedule is, how she treats others."

"Well, I would need to look like her, now wouldn't why? I highly doubt I could fool her friends that I'm her." She said.

He pulled out a picture from his pocket, and passed it to her. It was of a woman, buying coffee. She looked exactly like Alana. She had the same colour hair, the same eye colour, same body type… "Why?" she asked suspiciously.

"I want to bring down her team. I need someone inside to help me." he said, shrugging. He took back the picture. "Will you help me?"

"How will I get a feel of how she acts?"

"I will teach you, and you will watch her." He replied. "Yes or no Ms. Michaels."

Alana thought for a second, then smiled. She shook his outstretched hand, and smiled. "Sure."


	8. Chapter 8

It was dark out, Kate knew that much. She also knew that she would need to come up with a plan to get out of here. It had been 4 days since she became dead to them, and her confidence that they would know the difference between her, and an impostor that could be her identical twin. She missed her family, and her friends, and all she wanted to do right now, is to go home.

An idea suddenly popped into her head. Home. She would have to get Ari to trust her. She groaned inwardly. That would mean she would have to play loving wife. But she had to be careful, more careful that the women do it in the movies. They always seem to get caught, for being to forward at the beginning. She would have to start lowering her defence, starting now.

She rose, and opened the door. She could see the dim light coming from the living room, where Ari was reading. She took a deep breath, and calmly walked through the living room, and into the kitchen. She could feel Ari's eyes searing into her back, as she walked right by. She flicked on the kitchen lights, and began to get herself a drink of water.

She came back into the living room, Ari still watching her every move. She sat down on the other side of the couch, and looked over at him to meet his gaze. "Don't you have a TV or something?" she asked, taking a drink of water.

"I see you're warming up to me." he smiled.

Kate scowled. "Don't flatter yourself. I'm just going bored out of my mind."

Ari turned back to his book. "I do not watch TV, it plays with your mind."

"Right…" Kate rolled her eyes. "So what do you expect me to do?"

He looked up at her, and then nodded his head towards the bookshelf across the room. "Read." He said simply, going back to his book.

Kate paused, then sighed, and got up. She browsed through the books, finally picking one up. "Is this one good?" she asked him, showing him the cover.

Ari looked up. "Ah, that one you will definitely like, Caitlin. It is about a women, who becomes a cop, and has to deal with falling for her partner." He went back to his book.

Kate raised her eyebrow. "Whatever…" she said, sitting down.

This was going to be hell trying to get him to trust her.

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"I'm sorry sir, but they didn't buy any houses. They took a look through some of them, but never bought any." He was a man in cheap suit, with a thick head of blonde hair. He looked to be about mid-thirties.

Gibbs' scowl deepened. They were losing time. All of things he could be doing to his agent, he could have more time. "Did they say anything about where they were going, or what they were doing?" he asked, through clenched teeth.

Tony glanced over at Gibbs, then back at the man. "Anything might help us. Even the smallest details."

The man thought for a second, then shrugged. "They said that they were on their honeymoon, and they were trying to get a place to themselves."

Tony sighed. "Thank you, if you think of anything else, call us." He handed him his card.

They were almost out the door, when the man called back to them. He jogged up. "Tennessee." He said breathlessly. "He said that they would check out Tennessee, and then compare prices."


	9. Chapter 9

Ally-Rae: Don't worry; they won't be there for long hon.

"What!"

Gibbs slammed the brakes on the rental car and Tony cringed at the sound of all the cars behind them slamming their own brakes. Tony watched his boss's bad mood worsen and worsen, never taking his hand off the handle he had a death grip on above the seat. He glanced back at McGee, who seemed to be somewhat frightened of what Gibbs was going to do.

Not saying anything more into the phone, Gibbs pushed the 'off' button, and threw his cell at Tony. Cars were honking and people were yelling at them until Gibbs slammed down on the gas pedal, and pulled at U turn. Ignoring the people giving him rude hand gestures, he barked at Tony, "Get us on another plane back to Washington."

Tony stared at him in disbelief. "But Boss, what about – "

Gibbs turned and glared at Tony. "Get us the damn plane tickets DiNozzo!"

Tony began to dial the number of the Nashville, Tennessee airport and Gibbs glared at McGee in the backseat through the rear view mirror. "You didn't check the realtors in Washington!" he yelled.

McGee suddenly became a deep shade of red. "Uh… no sir, because I thought – "

"That it would be the last place he would take her? MCGEE! HE WAS COUNTING ON US THINKING LIKE THAT!" Gibbs yelled louder.

McGee cringed as Tony shut Gibbs' cell phone, and tossed it back at his boss, who caught it. "We have a flight in 2 hours."

Gibbs turned back to McGee. "You're just lucky Abby thought you hadn't finished sending the pictures. He bought a cottage down in the country.

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Kate was sitting down, now on the morning of her fifth day here in prison. She ate silently, not going on with her usual muttering about how Ari was going to die, how she was going to shoot him, or how Tony and Gibbs would find her soon.

Ari watched her eat, wondering if she really was just getting used to him being around, or if she was playing him. He wanted to hope that she was beginning to trust him, and beginning to love him, but he knew that she was playing him. After all, she was Secret Service, and an NCIS agent. She would do what she had to do.

He had no doubt in his mind that Agent Fornell has given the okay to kill him. But he was smarter than those FBI agents. And he most certainly was smarter than Caitlin's partner, Tony DiNozzo. But Gibbs… now there was a worthy opponent. He knew that Gibbs held a soft spot for her, just like he held a soft spot for the Goth lab rat. If Gibbs was as smart as he makes out to be, he would find out soon enough that Caitlin's alive, and he managed to switch her with a double.

Convincing Alana Michaels to do it seemed to be very easy; merely child's play. She was not a smart woman and she had no idea of his real plan; he worked easily to keep it that way. She had been very trusting… very unlike Caitlin.


	10. Chapter 10

Rosefern: Hey, I just wanted to say that I love your pin name! That's really cool how you picked Kate's alias. Very dedicated fan. Lol.

_No! Don't do it! That's got bad idea written all over it!_ Kate's mind screamed at Jenna, the star of her book, who was about to walk into a trap that was set up by the bad guy, Jake. He wanted to use Jenna as bait to get to the male star, Tim.

Kate suddenly frowned, and set the book in her lap. Was she just arguing with the character of a book? What was wrong with her? She should be working Ari over to get to her. She glanced over at Air, who was deep into his book. She really needed to get back home. She longed to joke with Abby. She missed home so much, that she actually missed Tony's stupid jokes, and him talking about his latest fling. She would give anything to just be with her niece, Brynne, and Abby.

She glanced down at her butterfly tat on her left hip. She loved it, it reminded her of Brynne whenever missing her got to tough. Kate had never gone for more than 2 days with out talking to Brynne. But, here she was, halfway over her fifth day with Ari. Surely, if Gibbs had noticed the difference, or anybody noticed, she would have already been found

Right?

Kate shook the doubting thoughts out of her head. She had to stay positive. She needed to focus on saving herself, she can't become like Jenna, and dependent on Gibbs and Tony to come and rescue her. Kate's eyes suddenly widened. Wait. Jenna. Jake. Tim. It all makes sense! She's just a trap for Gibbs! Just bait, used for luring Gibbs into some complicated trap.

No, that couldn't be it. He would have made it more obvious that she was switched. And he wouldn't be trying to make her fall for him. That would just complicate matters. But why did she feel like there was no escape from this one? That there was no hope whatsoever that Tony and Gibbs are going to break down that door, and shoot a bullet straight into Ari's head.

Nope – it was all down hill from here.

"Caitlin?"

Kate noticed that she had stopped shuddering when he spoke her name. She felt her heart actually lurch forward. Inwardly, she was shocked, and horrified at her reactions to this man. This was the man who held her hostage. This was the man who shot Gerald in the shoulder. This was the man who held Ducky hostage. This was the man who kidnapped her – not once but twice. This was the man who tried to use her friendship with Tony against her. This was the man who faked her death, so he could play some sick game of house with her.

This was the man who she was now falling in love with.

"Yes?" Kate said, trying to keep the hatred out of her voice. Not only hatred for Ari, but hatred for herself.

"What is wrong?" he asked. "You seem to be… distracted from your book."

Kate shrugged. "It's nothing. I just miss my family and friends."

"Ah… I knew that would come along shortly. I'm sorry, but this is the way it has to be if we are to be together. You would never spend more than a few seconds with me alone, never mind date me. Not to mention Gibbs breathing down our necks."

Kate glanced down at her book, just in time to see a tear drop down onto the page. She sniffed, folded the page corner and stood up. "I'm going to bed – I'm really tired." She said, without looking at him.

"I shall wake you when dinner is ready!" Ari called after her, as she shut the door.

Once the door was shut, Kate flung her book on the dresser that held her new clothes in it, and tossed herself onto her bed, burying her face into her pillow.

She tried to be strong. She really did. She never once cried during the whole 5 days that she was here. But now… She was balling her eyes out into a pillow. She hadn't cried this hard since… Tony almost died. She let out a small laugh to herself. What a dumb ass. He was even joking around when he was coughing up blood. His blood. Kate was never one to be squeamish, in fact when she was in elementary school, she was the girl who would be poking the dead birds, and other animals. But seeing one of her best friends cough up their own blood… well that was just to gross for Kate Todd to handle.

So now, here she was, crying her heart out into a pillow.

Gibbs pushed his way through the Washington Airport, Tony and McGee right behind him. Finally, he made it to the parking lot, and Gibbs quickly found their car. Once they were all in, he didn't even wait for McGee to shut his door – he just pressed down on the gas pedal, and screeched his way out of the lot.

Gibbs sped through more than one red light, not caring if he did just miss an accident. He shifted gears, weaving through the slow-moving cars, one-by-one, honking at even slower cars. Tony's face was stone cold, while Gibbs' was a mixture of hatred, and death.

Kate didn't hear the door open slightly behind her. She did feel the warm, comforting hand on her back, making circles. She flipped over onto her back, and saw that she was face to face with Ari. He leaned down at kissed her gently, wiping off all the tears on her cheeks.


	11. Chapter 11

Note: This isn't going to be an Ari/Kate pairing. I don't think I'm going to have any pairings – well, maybe Tate, but just a little bit because the show seemed to swing that way before they killed one of the best characters on that show! They should have killed McGee… he's an idiot.

PS: Your reviews were the best – they made me laugh out loud! Lol.

Rosefern: Uh… who's Kari? If you mean my name, then I'm Julie, and my best friends Kelly, and then my twin's Hannah… lol.

His hands on her body – his mouth on hers.

Kate scrubbed her body until it was red and sore. Her gums were bleeding from her brushing her teeth too hard. They didn't go all the way - she had to keep reminding herself. He just kissed her, and felt her up. That's it. Yet, she still felt the need to scrub her body harder. She kissed him back. She was disgusted with herself and what she had done, but he picked the perfect time to take advantage of her. She was sad, lonely, and just wanted to get away from here.

She finally turned off the shower and dried off quickly. Maybe it had something to do with what Tony said, about her identifying with her captor. Maybe that's why she kissed him back… for a second. Stupid Tony. Stupid, stupid her for kissing him back! Now, how was she supposed to get Ari to trust her, after she just kneed him, and pushed him off her onto the floor? There was no way out of here now. She would just have to wait to be rescued.

Kate shook her head, as she stared at herself in the mirror. No. She would not be some damsel in distress. She was going to save herself and get out of this mess. She wrapped the towel tighter around her body, as she opened the door going out into the hallway. She stuck her head out into the cooler air and looked around for him. He was nowhere to be seen, so she stepped out, and silently shut the door. She made her way quickly to her room and shut the door behind her. She turned, thanking God, when she didn't see him in the room. She quickly changed and sat back down on her bed.

She needed a new plan. She thought for a second. Maybe not… Maybe she could just play it off as her easing her way into life with… that monster. It was worth a try.

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Ari sat in his room, breathing slowly. She could really kick. He was expecting some sort of a resistance, but nothing he couldn't handle. But this… whoa, he really, really ached. He seriously doubted that there would any need for birth control anymore.

Caitlin… she still has some fight left in her. Sooner or later, it will be stomped out of her and she'll give in. That second where she kissed him back just proved his theory that she was giving into him. But he still didn't throw away the idea she was faking everything to get him to trust her. She was faking everything – becoming nicer to him and such – except for that kiss. She couldn't have faked that kiss and even if she did, then she wouldn't have kneed him… this hard.

He heard the shower turn off and few minutes later, two doors shut. He nodded to himself, noting that she was now in her room.

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"Abby! What's the address again?" Gibbs barked into the phone, looking along the edge of where the tree line stops and the road starts. There had been a few houses they'd see, but they all seemed normal enough. Gibbs had even gotten out and knocked on one of the residents' doors, just to look around.

Gibbs shut the cell phone shut and once again tossed it at Tony. "Look for the emergency number 37694." He said, the craving to pull out his gun and shoot something was becoming stronger. The longer they took to find Kate, the more things that bastard could be doing to her. And personally, all he wanted to think about was shooting the asshole.

Tony was completely focused on finding that number. He kept Kate out of his mind, the same with Ari. He couldn't let himself get distracted by his anger at Ari. The only thing he thought about that was about Ari, was how much he hoped that Gibbs would kill him slowly, and let him have a shot in. He didn't even have to give the deadly shot – just a shot at the guy would put his mind and conscience at ease.

The guilt he felt for not being able to recognize the real Kate from a fake one was tucked away in the back of his mind. Once they found her and got her back safely, then he was sure it would come out of hiding. How could he just let her down like that? If it wasn't for Kate's niece being determined to see what they had thought was Kate's body, then they never would have found her. Kate would have been stuck with that asshole forever. Or at least until he killed her, or he was killed.

"Right there boss!" McGee let out a cry of hope, pointing forward towards the right.

Gibbs squinted, but still couldn't see the number. "DiNozzo, that it?"

Tony leaned forward bit. "Yea boss. Two more driveways up."

Suddenly, Tony and McGee were thrown back into their seats, as Gibbs pressed down on the gas pedal. He squealed his way into the driveway and hit the brakes just missing the black car in the driveway.

Gibbs got out, kneeling behind his car door, weapon drawn. He looked at Tony, who was mirroring his actions, through the car and motioned towards the door. Tony nodded, and darted out from behind the door to behind the black car. He looked over the trunk of the car and covered Gibbs. Gibbs slowly moved up towards the door of the house, with Tony following him and pausing every few feet to make sure the door was closed and no one was coming out.

McGee withdrew his weapon, and his cell phone, promptly calling the local police and in forming them of the situation. He watched as Tony and Gibbs stepped up on both sides of the door. Gibbs gave Tony the nod the knock the door down.

"NCIS, open up!" Gibbs called, and a few seconds later, Tony kicked down the door.


	12. Chapter 12

Kate shot up from lying on her bed. Sleep left her quickly, as she widened her eyes and rushed out of her room. She was almost down the hallway, her mouth open to answer Gibbs' call, when Ari's hands wrapped around her mouth, and pulled her close to him. She lifted her elbow, but the cold metal of a gun head pressed into her temple.

She froze, cursing Ari and praising her friends for finding her in her head. He was backing her up slowly back into his room, when Tony's figure appeared at the other end of the hall.

"Do not move, Agent DiNozzo, or I will shoot her." Ari called down, still moving towards his bedroom.

Tony held his gun firmly in his hands. His anger finally was released from where he had kept it in the back of his mind. He opened his mouth to give Ari a death threat, but a glint of sunlight reflected off Gibbs' gun caught his attention. Looking through the corner of his eye at his boss, Tony nodded slowly, as Gibbs mimed him going around the back way.

Gibbs disappeared through the kicked in front door and Tony turned his attention back onto Kate and Ari. "Let her go, and I won't shoot you in the head." Tony said, through gritted teeth.

Tony could see the smirk on Ari's face, as he spoke. "Agent DiNozzo, you won't risk her life, will you?"

Tony's gaze hardened on him and his finger tightened against the trigger.

Ari finally backed up fully into the bedroom. Kicking the door closed, he gave Tony a farewell look. As the door closed, Kate's hope faded, but then burst back. Gibbs was the one who called. Not Tony. Kate's mind worked in overdrive, as Ari moved her towards the window. He kept the gun to her head firmly, as he popped out the screen. He grabbed her wrist and yanked her up onto the chair he was standing on. She caught her balance, just as he pushed her out the window, and onto the ground, keeping his hand on her wrist at all times.

Ari stood and turned around, his gun drawn. The barrel of Gibbs' gun stared back at him and Gibbs stared down the barrel of Ari's gun. Kate winced, as Ari's grip on her wrist tightened.

Gibbs glared at Ari. "Let go of my agent."

Ari smirked back at him. "Touchy, aren't we Special Agent Gibbs?"

Gibbs' hand tightened around the trigger and his eyes darted from Kate, to Ari. "She's one of the best. I'm not about to let her go."

Ari's eyebrows rose and he yanked Kate towards him. Kate swore in pain from his twisting her wrist. "That is exactly why I need her. She's one of the best."

A click from behind Ari's head startled him. "I'll say it again. Let. Her. Go." Tony said. His voice was laced with guilt, anger, and frustration.

Ari's gaze moved from the corner of his eye, back to Gibbs, who was smirking at him. "If I were you, I'd do what he says." He replied, warningly.

Sirens were heard down the road faintly, growing louder with each second that past by. A smirk hovered on Kate's face, while Ari silently dropped his gun. Tony moved quickly, and shot him in the leg, causing him to cry out in pain, buckle over and let Kate go. She pulled away from him, and rubbed her wrist as she watched. Gibbs handcuffed Ari roughly, and read him his rights, while Tony moved over beside Kate. They both watched, as Gibbs forced him to walk on his wounded leg.

The sirens were now in the driveway, as two ambulances and a few squad cars whipped into the driveway. "Kate?" Tony asked faintly.

Kate broke from her trance, and looked up at him. "Yea Tony?"

Their eyes met, and he asked her, just as quietly. "Did he… hurt you?"

She paused, lost in all the emotions behind his eyes, before answering him. There were so many ways to answer that one question. So many that could hide her real feelings, but only one that could tell him what she really felt. "I –"

"Kate!"

Both of them looked up at McGee. "Kate, are you okay?" McGee asked, stopping short.

Kate's moment of slight weakness was gone, just like that. She put her brave face back on, and she frowned at McGee. "Probie, are you suggesting that I can't look out for myself?"

As McGee stood there, trying to come up with an answer that would earn him brownie points with her, she pushed past him, and headed over to Gibbs.

Gibbs looked up from giving the officer instructions for what to do with Ari. He walked away, mid-sentence, and headed over to Kate. "You need to go to that ambulance." He pointed over to the one that wasn't looking after Ari's bullet wound.

Kate straightened up, and pulled open Gibbs' car door. "I'm fine. I just want to go home." She replied, with all the strength she could muster.

Gibbs gave her his 'do it now' look, and she sighed. "Gibbs. I'm fine. Let's just get my statement, so I can go home."

Gibbs slammed his car door back shut, and pointed over to the ambulance again. "Agent Todd, I refuse to take your statement, until you get your ass over to that van."

Kate gave him her dirtiest look she dared, before turning on her heel and walking over to the van. Once her back was turned, she let out a slight smile, glad that things would be back to normal in no time. Soon, no one would be asking her any more questions, about how she felt. She was perfectly fine with locking everything up.

She was used to it by now.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Omgomgomgomgomgomgomg I am sooooo sorry for totally neglecting this story! Here's my extremely horrible ending…

Love

Julie

"Aunt Kate!"

Kate looked up from getting out of the passenger seat. She looked around the parking lot, before seeing Brynne jump on her. She winced from her bandaged wrist, but still hugged her back. "Hey Brynne."

"I was so worried. Don't you EVER do that again!" Brynne said, crying into Kate's shoulder.

Kate let out a small smile. "I'll try not to. Hey Bri." Kate greeted her brother, Brian.

Brian, Brynne's father, smiled at Kate through his tears. "Hey Kat. Good to see you alive, you had us all scared to death. Dad actually got out from his chair during the football game."

Kate raised her eyebrow, as Brynne let go of her aunt. "Really? Well, doesn't that make me feel all warm inside."

"Kate!"

Kate turned around, only to be pounced on by Abby. "Kate, you're back! You're okay! Wait, no you're not! What happened to you wrist!" Abby demanded, still hugging her.

"Well, I'll tell you… if you let me breathe…" Kate choked out.

"O, sorry. Wouldn't want you dead after you've just come back from the dead, would we?" Abby grinned.

Kate settled into her chair, giving herself a comfortable sigh. She had just finished given her statement, and now she could relax… until it was time to be in court. She reached over, and turned on her computer with her good arm. Ducky had wrapped her proclaimed sprained wrist in a tensor bandage, after hugging her very tightly. She had been proud of herself. She thought that she would have to keep her guard up; just to make sure that there were no emotional breakdowns at work.

The elevator dinged, and Kate braced herself for a remark from Tony, but a gruff voice surprised her. "Get out of this office right now."

Kate jumped, and turned. "Gibbs, I don't need to take time off. I'm fine."

Gibbs walked around to his desk, and sat down. "If it were up for debate, Agent Todd, then I wouldn't bother saying anything. Get out, and take some time off." He made it clear he wasn't going to take no for an answer, by booting up his own computer.

Kate sighed, and quickly shut her computer down. She gathered her things in silence, and headed towards the elevator. As she waited for the elevator to ding, she wondered where Tony was. On cue, the elevator dinged, and Tony emerged from it. "Going home?" He asked, stepping out.

Kate shrugged and stepped on. "Orders." She said simply, pressing the button.

A shrill whistle from the kettle woke her up from her dark dreams. She blinked, wondering where she was, before she remembered that she was home. Safe. Away from him.

She slowly got up from the couch, and headed into the kitchen. She reached over the sink and took a tea bag out of the tin can, and dropped it into a stray mug. Steam rose from the hot water that she poured into the mug, warming her hands. She discarded the kettle, not caring where it was put at the moment. She wrapped both hands around the mug, making her way into the living room of her apartment.

She snuggled into the pile of pillows and blankets she had made in the corner of the couch, cradling the tea close to her. She played, absently, with the tea bag string, as she looked around her apartment. She missed this. She missed just being with her things. Surrounded by pictures of her friends, and family. Surrounded by memories. She had just nestled further into her blankets, content with watching reruns of sappy romantic movies, when a knock at the door came.

She frowned, flicked the TV on mute, and slowly brought herself to stand. She made her way to the door, still holding her tea in her hands. Standing on her tippy-toes, she looked through the peephole. Her frown deepened, as she undid the bolt lock and the chain lock. She opened the door. "Tony, what are you doing here? Since when do you know where I live?"

Tony shrugged. "Brynne owed me one, after flipping out on me. I just thought I'd come and check up on you… make sure you're okay."

Kate smiled, and leaned on the open door. "Tony, I'm fine. But… thank you for coming here and asking."

Tony looked past her. "Can… can I come in?"

Kate shook her head. "Sorry, yea, come on in." she moved aside, letting him in.

He hung his coat up, and placed his shoes next to hers. "Would you like some tea?" Kate asked, walking into the kitchen.

Tony nodded. "Uh, sure."

Kate quickly made him a tea, and sat down beside him at the kitchen table. "So…"

Tony sipped his tea. "Kate… I know you're lying. I know that you're really not okay. You were going to tell me something before McGee interrupted… Tell me?"

Kate raised her eyebrow. "Tony, I'm fine."

He gave her a look of disbelief. "Kate…"

"Tony, I'm not lying!"

Tony sighed, and looked down at his tea. "Kate, when I a teenager, I lived next to this girl. We would walk together to and from school. Sometimes, we would even hang out. She… she had this look in her eye. The same look you have in your eyes right now. I used to ask her what was wrong, but everyday, she'd say the same thing… nothing was wrong, and she was fine." He looked up at her, right in the eyes. "Kate, it turned out that she had been kidnapped from her home when she was 10. She had been living with this couple, the couple that seemed to be the perfect couple, for 6 years, and no one had realized that she wasn't their daughter."

He paused, watching her reaction. Her eyes were wide, and her attention was completely on him. He continued, "If I just pressed the matter further… maybe… maybe things would have been different. The couple had killed her before anyone could find out. They had gotten paranoid."

"Tony I-"

"Kate, I'm not going to make that mistake twice." He said, his eyes full of determination. "I'm not leaving until you tell me how you feel. Until you cry. Until you realize that you're not invincible."

Kate stared at him for a few seconds, but it seemed like forever to them both. Slowly, she stood, and walked out of the kitchen. Tony went after her, watching her as she placed the mug on the side table, and hugged her arms around herself as she sat down on the couch, on top of the blankets.

Moving quietly, Tony sat next to her, and placed free blankets around her. She looked up at him with teary eyes, and she buried her face into his chest, griping his t-shirt tightly. He watched her, surprised, but gently ran his hand on her hair.

A/N: Hehehehehehe…. FIN!


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